Llamatron: 2112 - Atari ST (1991) & Commodore Amiga (1992)

Back in the early to mid eighties, every notable (and not so notable) arcade game seemed to be converted to home computer formats.  Even before this there were unlicensed clones going by barely disguised names such as Skramble!, Defenda and Pheenix.  One title that got overlooked was Robotron: 2084.  It was released in 1982 and designed by Eugene Jarvis who had already created the classic side scroller Defender.  It featured unusual twin-stick controls, where one joystick was used for moving your character and the other was used to control the direction of fire.

This oversight was put right in 1991 when Jeff Minter released his take on the game - Llamatron: 2112.  It initially came out on the Atari ST with Amiga and PC (DOS) conversions appearing the following year.  And coming from the creator of Attack of the Mutant Camels, Sheep in Space and Space Giraffe, it was bound to feature various ruminants.  All versions look and sound more or less the same, but the Amiga and ST feature a superior control method.

Like Robotron, Llamatron is played out on a single screen.  You control the titular laser-spitting robotic Llama.  Your primary objective is to destroy all the 'grunts' while  optionally rescuing the various 'beasties'.  The 'beasties' are small goats, sheep, llamas and camels that wander around the play area and garner bonus points when collected.  The 'grunts' mindlessly head towards you and are made up of a wide variety of objects - cutlery, space invaders, cigarette packets - things like that.

As well as the grunts there is plethora of other enemies.  These include 'brains' which turn the beasties into zombeasts that then hunt you down.  The 'screamer' relentlessly heads for you, takes a lot of punishment and fires missiles.  There is also deadly rain that can only be stopped by touching the umbrella(s) that bounce around the screen.

To help you out there are plenty of power ups including reflect shots, love hearts (attracts the beasties), temporary invincibility and smart bombs.

Basic control comprises a joystick.  The Llamatron fires automatically in the direction you are heading although you can hold down the fire button to lock the direction it shoots.  In single player mode you can also choose to have a robot helper that fires automatically and collects the beasties.  For the full Robotron experience, ST and Amiga owners have the option to plug a second joystick into the mouse port and play the game in all its twin stick goodness.  In this mode you move your llama with the left joystick and control the direction of fire with the right.  It takes a little getting used to but is by far the best way to play the game.

The purple robot doubles your fire power and helps collect the 'beasties'

Like Robotron, the graphics in Llamatron are kept simple, as are the sound effects which consist of a mix of chip and digitised effects.  In a way, Llamatron reminds me of Satellite Attack from a decade earlier - it's not much to look at or listen to, but sit down for quick blast and before you know it, a couple of hours have gone by.  It's very addictive and the gameplay is spot on.  There aren't many Jeff Minter games I really like, but this is a classic.


Example gameplay Atari ST....

 

Lemmings - Commodore Amiga - 1991

Along with Tetris, Lemmings has to be one of the most ported games out there.  Originally released in 1991 for the Commodore Amiga, it has been ported to 30+ devices ranging from the Nintendo Gameboy to the Playstation 3 and Mobile Phones.

For me, the game is best controlled with a mouse which leaves us with the initial versions from 1991 for the Amiga, Atari ST and DOS.  Although all three versions play the same, the original Amiga game has the best graphics and sound in my opinion.

The concept of the game is simple - guide a specified percentage of Lemmings through the exit portal within the time limit.  

There are 120 levels split across four difficulty settings.  FUN is the easiest and is mainly there to get you used to the controls.  The game gets progressively more difficult through TRICKY and TAXING, with MAYHEM being the most demanding.  There is a password system so you don't need to repeat completed levels.  

One of the TAXING levels.  Note the lack of available skills.

Each level starts with the Lemmings dropping out of a trap door.  Their release rate is shown at the bottom left of the screen.  This can be increased or decreased using the + and - icons, but cannot be set lower than the initial rate.  Left to their own devices the Lemmings will move in a certain direction until they reach an obstacle, at which point they will turn around and walk the other way.  If they encounter a long drop, water, lava, a trap or anything else lethal to them, they will walk mindlessly to their deaths like, er, lemmings.

You do not control the Lemmings directly but give them actions by using the skill icons.  The Climber icon allows the Lemming to scale a vertical surface.  Using Floater on a Lemming allows it to survive a high fall. The Bomb causes the selected Lemming to self destruct taking a chunk of the landscape with it.  Blocker stops other Lemmings passing and sends them in the opposite direction.  A Bridge Builder constructs a set of twelve steps to cross chasms or climb to higher platforms. The Basher icon orders the chosen Lemming to dig horizontally if in front of a suitable surface.  Use the Miner or Digger skills and the Lemming will respectively tunnel diagonally or vertically down.

Building a stairway to heaven.

The final two icons are 'Paws' and Nuke 'Em.  Paws obviously pauses the game.  You can still scroll around the level to plan a route or quickly get to a Lemming that's about to die, and becomes invaluable in later levels with the tight time limit.  Nuke 'Em causes all your Lemmings to explode if a level is obviously lost.

Some parts of a level can be made of metal and can't be dug through, blown up or damaged in any way.  Some walls can only be tunneled through from a certain direction.

This obstacle can only be tunnelled through in the direction of the arrows.  The metal floor prevents digging under.

When Lemmings was released in 1991 it was a totally original concept - there was nothing else like it.  In 2016 it is still fun to play.  The graphics are still acceptable and the tiny Lemmings are well animated despite being only 8 pixels high.  The soundtrack is good for the most part, mixing some original songs with music from other Psygnosis games and some well known tunes (March of the Mods on the intro, the Can Can and the like in game).  Sound effects are limited in number but are effective.  The learning curve is pretty good too, ranging from very simple on the lower levels to practically impossible in the MAYHEM stages.  Like Tetris it's a game the that stands the test of time.

A couple of FUN levels....